The Rajasthan Cabinet today decided to amend prison rules to include remuneration days in the parole tenure, in a bid to provide relief to prisoners who have displayed good conduct.

The Cabinet also has decided to amend the Prisoner Shortening of Sentences Rules, 2006. (Reuters)

The Rajasthan Cabinet today decided to amend prison rules to include remuneration days in the parole tenure, in a bid to provide relief to prisoners who have displayed good conduct. Any convicted prisoner is entitled for parole on the basis of good conduct as per the jail manual under which two days of remuneration is given every month. However, this was not included in the parole tenure, state Parliamentary Affairs Minister Rajendra Rathore said.

In the meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, it was decided that the Rajasthan Prisoners Release on Parole Rules will be amended to include the remuneration days, he said.

The Cabinet also has decided to amend the Prisoner Shortening of Sentences Rules, 2006.

The amendment will reduce the four-year remuneration term to two-and-a-half years for prisoners who have been awarded life term and have already served 14 years of sentence, the minister said. “Earlier, there was a provision of release before time, if a prisoner had completed 14 years and had four years of remuneration. However, it was not possible as one could not accumulate the four-year remuneration,” Rathore said.

He said special days like Gandhi Jayanti and Mahaveer Jayanti, when the prisoners are given relaxation in the sentence, will also be counted in the remuneration period.

The chief minister reviewed the second phase of the Jal Swavalamban Yojana, which was launched in December last year and will conclude on June 30. “As many 1,35,301 water structures will be made in 4,213 villages under the second phase. Of them, 36,296 works have been completed, while 94,157 works have been started, the minister said.

A report will be prepared to assess the increase in water table, green cover and impact on the agriculture sector, Rathore said.

The cabinet also reviewed the situation of seasonal diseases as 25 deaths have been reported due to swine flu in the state since January, he said.

The chief minister has given necessary directions to implement a vision document to double the income of farmers by 2022, Rathore said.

She has also directed officials to conduct fortnightly reviews of the progress of the JSY and the Deendayal Upadhyay Patta Vitran Abhiyan to ensure benefit to people, he said

Replying to a question on senior party MLA Ghanshyam Tiwari, who termed a Bill that provided Cabinet rank status to former chief ministers of Rajasthan a “feudal move”, Rathore said it was “unfair” on the part of Tiwari.

Citing examples of former chief ministers, he said it is not the first time that such facilities are being provided to ex-CMs. “Rajasthan is not the first state to do this. Such facilities are provided to discharge social duties of former chief ministers,” he said.

He said that a show-cause notice served to Tiwari by the party had nothing to do with his comments on the Bill.